Abbott flags major campaigning role for Joyce

Tony Abbott. left, said on Thursday: “I’m going to have Barnaby Joyce campaigning right around Australia, particularly I’m going to have him campaigning in rural and regional Queensland.”
Photo: Alex Ellinghausen

by
James Massola | Online political correspondent

Federal Opposition Leader
Tony Abbott
has flagged a prominent role for
Barnaby Joyce
in the next federal election campaign, and praised the Queenslander’s decision not to contest the lower house seat of Maranoa.

Senator Joyce, of Queensland’s Liberal National Party, announced on Wednesday that he would not contest Maranoa after incumbent
Bruce Scott
, 68, signalled he would stand, citing the need for party unity.

Mr Abbott said on Thursday: “I’m going to have Barnaby Joyce ­campaigning right around Australia, particularly I’m going to have him campaigning in rural and regional Queensland.

“The great thing about Barnaby’s decision to stay in the Senate is that he will remain a national voice.

“Barnaby has decided in the interests of a smooth and harmonious team, he was going to stay in the ­Senate."

Mr Abbott, who is also Liberal leader, also moved to quell speculation that some WA Liberal MPs could cross the floor to support Labor legislation that would phase out regulatory watchdog Wheat Exports Australia.

Such a move is popular in WA, which is a major wheat exporter, but opposed by eastern states Nationals MPs.

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Deputy Opposition Leader
Julie Bishop
last week persuaded WA colleagues to support an east coast Nationals’ push for a two-year delay to deregulation, rather than back Labor’s legislation.

The issue escalated after WA Nationals MP
Tony Crook
said he would back Labor’s bill, infuriating WA Liberals and embarrassing Ms Bishop, who is from WA.

Ms Bishop said any dissent on the bill would hurt Mr Abbott’s leadership and told MPs she had persuaded Mr Crook to take the same position as the WA branch of the party.

Mr Abbott said he understood both sides of the argument on wheat ­deregulation, but added that a ­decision had been taken.

“We have made a judgment call and as Julie Bishop has said publicly on a number of occasions lately, we want a managed transition for this important industry and we don’t think a managed transition is what we are going to get from a government with a track record that is incompetent and untrustworthy," Mr Abbott said.

Mr Crook’s predecessor in the seat of O’Connor, former Liberal MP
Wilson Tuckey
, has led an internal party push to support immediate deregulation of the wheat market and has been heavily critical of Ms Bishop.

The Coalition’s shadow assistant treasurer, West Australian
Mathias Cormann
, acknowledged there were diverse views in the WA branch about the timing of full deregulation, but said compromise had been reached.

“As Liberals we are committed to full deregulation of wheat export marketing arrangements. That has always been our position, that’s what we voted for in 2008 and that continues to be our position,’’ he said.

Fellow WA Liberal Ken Wyatt said the party was committed to full deregulation and opposed to a return to a single wheat desk.